Desire to Lure [Esports] - Chapter 5

Chapter 5

As Sheng Xu’s hand froze, Ever lost no time in running toward Yu Wenzhi.

He clutched his nose, his hands covered in blood. His eyes were bloodshot and red with excitement, the veins in his throat pulsing.

“Manager, Captain, Sheng Xu is absolutely insane!” Ever cried, tears streaming down his face.

Xu Rui was also startled. He was somewhat faint at the sight of blood; seeing Ever waving a bloody face in front of him, he nearly blacked out.

“Slow down, slow down.”

Xu Rui fought back his dizziness, his body already leaning visibly toward Yu Wenzhi for support.

The commotion drew Zechuan, Ware, and Maoyi over as well.

“The Captain and the others are back?”

“What is Ever screaming about?”

“Holy crap! Ever, what happened to you!”

Seeing that the audience had mostly arrived, Ever immediately questioned Sheng Xu at the top of his lungs: “Wasn’t it just because I interrupted your duo-queue with Chuan-ge? I only asked after seeing you guys play two rounds already! If you didn’t agree, you could have just said no! Fine, why don’t I just give you my spot from now on? I can’t afford to offend you, alright!”

In one sentence, he had completely shifted the blame.

Sheng Xu snapped his head around, his eyes fierce. Just as he was about to speak—

“Sheng Xu, don’t take it too far!”

Zechuan used his body to shield Ever, his chest heaving with anger, his tone unsteady.

He had actually begun to change his opinion of Sheng Xu and had taken the initiative to show kindness, only to have it repaid with Ever being brutally beaten. Zechuan felt he was partially responsible; he shouldn’t have duo-queued with Sheng Xu today. Thus, he couldn’t wait to point the finger.

“God, there’s so much blood. Who would ever dare to team up with him after this?”

Ware was already biased toward Ever. Arriving without knowing the context, he saw one side bleeding profusely and the other radiating a murderous aura; it was obvious at a glance whose fault it was.

“Is he going to hit anyone who doesn’t queue with him from now on? Real thug behavior. Can’t mess with him.”

Maoyi glared at Sheng Xu and fished a tissue out of his pocket, handing it to Ever to wipe the blood.

The words Sheng Xu wanted to use in his defense died in his throat.

Tell Ever’s brothers that Ever was twisting the truth? Tell them Ever had provoked him by insulting his parents?

They were simply looking for a reason to stand united against him. If he tried to desperately “cut open his stomach to prove how much porridge he ate,” he would only become a joke.

Dusk was approaching. The sunset sliced through the window, carving a clear boundary on the floor. The romance and joy of twilight were pointlessly stained with the shadow of despair.

Ever, Zechuan, Maoyi, Ware, Xu Rui, and Yu Wenzhi all stood in the sunlight, their hair glowing red, their bodies surrounded by warmth.

Only Sheng Xu stood in the shadows, blocked in the cold by an invisible barrier. The brighter the light became, the deeper the darkness seemed.

Yu Wenzhi had remained silent throughout Ever’s tearful complaint, merely using one arm to prop up the blood-faint Xu Rui. Seeing the crowd settle down, he raised his eyes and gave Sheng Xu a faint look.

“Do you have nothing to say for yourself?”

Yu Wenzhi’s tone was light, but his voice wasn’t low. Sheng Xu heard it clearly, and that chill struck him again.

“Captain, he just finds me eyesore! I might as well just give him my spot!” Ever wailed.

Sheng Xu pressed his lips together until they were white, the veins at his temples throbbing. However, seconds later, he let out a cold sneer, his expression indifferent.

When he first arrived, he had blocked Yu Wenzhi on the stairs and told him to stay out of his business. Later, he had talked back harshly in the dorm. Yu Wenzhi surely detested him already.

So what if Ever twisted the truth? TEA’s first team was a united front; he was the interloper, the man stuck between a rock and a hard place.

But for some reason, the thought made his heart sting slightly.

Yu Wenzhi didn’t wait. He immediately retracted his gaze and patted Ever on the shoulder: “Does it hurt?”

Ever nodded vigorously.

Yu Wenzhi: “Go to the hospital for a checkup. Check the nasal bone.”

“Okay, okay.” The look Ever gave Yu Wenzhi was full of brilliance—a total posture of victory.

Xu Rui glanced weakly at Yu Wenzhi, rubbing his temples: “Wenzhi, you accompany Ever. I’m a bit faint from the blood.”

Ever hurried to hide the blood with his sleeve, glancing at Sheng Xu from the corner of his eye as he asked in a muffled voice: “Manager, how do you plan to…”

Yu Wenzhi took over the conversation: “The Manager will handle it strictly.”

Ever was relieved, a smile spreading behind his sleeve.

To everyone’s ears, the phrase “handle it strictly” sounded like they were going to give up on Sheng Xu. Although Yu Wenzhi wasn’t the manager, his status in the Tea Team was extraordinary; the manager would not easily go against his wishes.

Sheng Xu thought so too.

The sun had completely set, and the night lights flickered on against a deep blue sky.

Sheng Xu flicked open his cigarette pack, lit one, and squinted his eyes, taking a heavy drag. The streetlights became blurred through the smoke.

Since the contract was signed, they probably wouldn’t kick him out immediately. Instead, he’d likely be forced to watch the “water cooler” for a season before leaving.

He came to TEA to win a championship. He didn’t want to sit around. If it came to it, he’d just break the contract and find another team. He only had a forty-pound backpack anyway; it wouldn’t be hard to pack.

The acrid smoke rushed into his lungs, and in no time, the cigarette burned out. Stubbing out the butt, Sheng Xu shook the pack. There was no rattling sound; not a single cigarette was left. He glanced at the messy pile of butts—he had smoked so many.

At 8 PM, Yu Wenzhi finally returned with Ever.

They had cleaned the wound at the hospital and done a checkup. The mucous membrane was damaged, but no bones were broken. The bleeding had stopped long ago. When they first saw the doctor, Ever had tried several times to ask if it could be classified as “minor injury”, but Yu Wenzhi had deflected his words. Later, when the X-ray showed the bones were intact, Ever sullenly stopped asking.

Yu Wenzhi looked at the results and gave a soft snort.

It seemed the kid had experience in fighting; he knew he was an adult and knew exactly where he could and couldn’t hit.

After their return, Sheng Xu was called to the conference center. The entire first team was there. Xu Rui sat in the center with a stack of contracts in front of him, looking very official.

Yu Wenzhi sat beside him, elegantly crossing his legs, fingers interlaced on his lap. He had his eyes closed to rest, not giving Sheng Xu a single glance. The bright white lights hit his face. From Sheng Xu’s perspective, the expressionless Yu Wenzhi looked as delicate and beautiful as a divine statue.

Ever had cotton stuffed in his nose, and the tip was a large patch of purple. His teammates huddled around him with concerned whispers—a picture of unity and friendship.

Xu Rui hissed and slapped the table.

“You’re too lawless, Sheng Xu. I don’t expect you to treat the club as home or your teammates as family, but can’t you even manage peaceful coexistence?”

Sheng Xu remained silent.

Xu Rui breathed a sigh of relief; he was terrified Sheng Xu would reply with, “I’m like this at home too.”

Xu Rui: “Look at what you did to Ever. Let me be clear, there is competition between you two, but the competition I want to see is fair and open, in the game!”

Sheng Xu was getting impatient. The performance was taking too long.

“Just say it. What do you want to do?”

Xu Rui: “It will definitely be handled strictly. Ever’s medical fees will be deducted from your salary. During Ever’s recovery, you will pay for all his food and care. First, apologize to Ever!”

“An apology is impossible.”

The reply came back clean, sharp, and without a trace of warmth.

Ever got anxious: “That’s it?”

This was “handling it strictly”? No termination, no public announcement, no ban from matches? Did he get beaten for nothing?

Yu Wenzhi slowly opened his eyes and looked at Ever, his gaze unreadable.

“Wait.” Xu Rui soothed Ever, then turned back to Sheng Xu. “I know you’re arrogant. You think the Tea Team can’t function without you. Don’t say everyone is targeting you—I’ll give you a chance. Go put a team together and play a scrim against the first team. If you can win, you join the training normally and no one will object. If you can’t, you’re free to terminate your contract.”

Sheng Xu snapped his eyes up, his gaze sharp. His knuckles gave a muffled crack.

Ever was instantly overjoyed.

TEA’s first team was known as one of the “Three Great Mountains” of the LPL; their strength was top-tier. If a team Sheng Xu threw together could defeat the current Tea Team, they could basically start their own organization and go straight for the World Championship. This move by the manager was brilliant—it didn’t give people reason to talk, yet it logically forced Sheng Xu to terminate his contract and pay the penalty.

Given Sheng Xu’s arrogant and proud personality, he definitely wouldn’t back down. Sheng Xu was as good as gone.

Sure enough, Sheng Xu sneered, his voice laced with ice: “Fine.”

The people he could find had almost zero chance of beating the Tea Team, especially when the Tea Team had the “Fox” Yu Wenzhi, who calculated every move.

But he would give it his all. Even if he left, he would leave with his head held high.

Yu Wenzhi looked at the table and let out a silent, light laugh. He seemed very satisfied that Sheng Xu had fallen into the trap.

Sheng Xu felt the excessive amount of smoke he’d inhaled tonight acting up; every breath felt heavy in his lungs. The first time in his life he’d bought someone candy, it resulted in a carefully calculated eviction.

Xu Rui waved them off: “Dismissed, dismissed. Wenzhi, stay with me for a bit.”

Sheng Xu slammed the door and left.

Ever didn’t mind now. Comforted by his teammates, he happily went back to the dorm to recover.

Once the room was empty, Xu Rui gave Yu Wenzhi a side-eye: “What kind of rotten idea was that? How could a team Sheng Xu puts together beat you guys? I worked so hard to sign him; don’t actually let him get kicked out!”

Yu Wenzhi said unhurriedly: “Doubt yourself, but don’t doubt me.”

Xu Rui: “Impressive.”

Yu Wenzhi ignored him, took out his phone, and created a group chat.

Members: ZZY (World’s top Top-laner from Team V6), Lika (Choi Kyung-sung’s personal Support from Team QZ), Yan Tingyu (The “Tactical Master” and new Jungler of DTG), and Xu Ceming (Captain and Mid-laner of Team DOG).

ZZY: “what”

Lika:” what”

Xu Ceming: “World unity?”

Yan Tingyu: “?”

Yu Wenzhi: “^_^ I sincerely invite everyone to come and ‘give a cut’.”

Support Desire to Lure [Esports]